The National Weather Service will provide
forecast, warning and consultation services for the prevention, suppression,
and management of forest and rangeland fires primarily for Federaland State wildland management agencies.

2.0
PittsburghWeather Forecast Office Fire Weather Policy

The National Weather Service Weather Forecast
Office (WFO)
in
Pittsburgh
Pennsylvaniabegan
providing fire weather support in accordance with the National Weather Service
Fire Weather Policy on February 1, 2000. This support is provided for the area
described as the Pittsburgh County Warning Area (CWA). The support consists of daily fire weather forecasts
during the fire season. Spot (non-routine) forecasts, fire weather watches and
red flag warnings are provided on an as needed basis at any time throughout the
year.

There are 8 Forestry Districts served by the
Pittsburgh CWA. These districts were established by the state Forestry
Departments based on general location. It is the responsibility of the various
forestry districts to be familiar with the fire zones located in their
district. The forestry districts in the Pittsburgh CWA are as follows:

In
Pennsylvania:

District 4

District 6

District 8

District 14

In
Maryland:

Western Region

In
West Virginia:

District 1

In
Ohio:

Northeast Forest District (Formerly District 3)

Southern Forest District (Formerly District 4)

6.0 State Liaison Offices

The state liaison office is the NWS office that
handles statewide fire weather coordination with the users for a given state.
The state liaison offices for the Pittsburgh CWA are as follows:

Maryland- WFO
Sterling,
Virginia

44087
Weather Service RoadSterling,
VA
20166

(703) 206-0107

Ohio- WFO
Wilmington,
Ohio

1901
South State Route134

Wilmington,
OH
45177

(937) 383-0929

Pennsylvania-
WFO
State College,
Pennsylvania

227
West Beaver Street, Suite 402State
College,
PA
16801-4921

(814) 237-1152

West Virginia- WFO
Charleston,
West Virginia

400 Parkway Road

Charleston,
WV
25309

(304) 746-0190

7.0 Description of Area

The Pittsburgh CWA is located in the northeast
portion of the continental
United
Stateswith
an area of about 19,000 square miles. The topography ranges from rolling hills
with farmland over the south and west portions to mountains in the north and
east. The Allegheny Mountains extend along the eastern boundary of the CWA with
elevations as high as 4,000 feet in
West Virginiaand
Maryland. Considerable
agricultural land lies in the rolling hills and mountain valleys. Hardwood
forests provide the majority of the vegetative coverage in the higher
elevations. The growing season averages about 166 days in length; extending
from late April to mid October.

8.0 Fire Season

WFO Pittsburgh will issue a daily fire weather
forecast (PITFWFPIT) for the Pittsburgh CWA during the entire year.

A site specific
weather forecast (PITFWMPBZ) will be issued daily at 2100 UTC. This product
will be created by using the published forecast grids from GFE (Graphical
Forecast Editor). This forecast is created for 5 specific sites. Two sites are
in Pennsylvania, at Marienville in Forest County, and Quarry Trail in
Westmoreland County. Three sites are in West Virginia, at Kingwood in Preston
County, at Beard Knob in Tucker County, and at Tomlinson Run in Hancock County.

The daily fire weather product will be issued by
the Pittsburgh CWA for each of the 36 counties within the CWA.

The fire weather forecast will cover specific
conditions for a 36 hour period and consist of three 12-hour periods (today,
tonight, and tomorrow). The product will also contain a 3-7 day extended
forecast issued by WFO Pittsburgh and an 8-14 day outlook issued by the Climate
Prediction Center (CPC) for the region. A brief synopsis of the weather as it
pertains to the CWA will precede the forecast

10.1 Information Included in the Daily Fire
Weather Product

The fire weather forecast product will be issued
between 3 and 5 AM daily for a 36-hour period of detailed forecast information.
This will consist of three 12-hour periods (today, tonight and the next day).
An extended 3 to 7 day forecast for the area followed by a general wind speed
forecast for the same period and an 8 to 14 day
outlook will also be included. The outlook will be a departure from normal
based on CPC’s prediction for the region. The daily forecast will also include
a headline in the event of a Fire Weather Watch or Red Flag Warning. The fire
weather product from the Pittsburgh WFO will include the following information:

a)A headline {optional, but required if a Fire
Weather Watch or Red Flag Warning are in effect.} (HEADLINE)

The spot forecast is a site-specific, localized
weather forecast available for wildfire support. This forecast will include
wind, temperature, humidity, and smoke dispersion (mixing height/mixing winds)
forecasts. It will normally cover a 12 to 36 hour period and will be issued
upon request by the agency overseeing the wildfire. Spot forecasts will only be
issued for prescribed or planned burns requested by federal and state agencies.

11.1 Requesting the Issuance of a Spot Forecast

a) Completion of form WS Form D-1by the requesting agency
which will provide current weather information for the
site-specific location.

Due to the
non-meteorological parameters involved in forecasting fire danger ratings, the
direct computation of fire categories will be calculated in season by the
Bureau of Forestry. When a category of VERY HIGH or EXTREME is calculated, PBZ
should be notified. State/federal agencies may request PBZ to issue a Special
Weather Statement (SPS) highlighting the threat.

A
FIRE WEATHER WATCH is issued to alert the user to the possible development of a
Red Flag event in the near future. This could be up to 72 hours in advance.

A RED
FLAG WARNING is issued to warn the user of an impending or on-going Red Flag
event. A Red Flag Warning will be issued immediately when Red Flag conditions
are occurring or for impending Red Flag conditions when there is a high degree
of confidence that conditions will develop within the next 6 hours.

Specific
conditions must be met for a Fire Weather Watch and/or a Red Flag Warning to be
issued. These conditions are as follows:

For PA...
- Relative Humidity less than or equal to 30%
- Sustained Wind Speed greater than or equal to 15 mph
- 10-hour Fuel Stick Moisture less than or equal to 15%

For MD...
- Relative Humidity less than or equal to 30%
- Sustained Wind Speed greater than or equal to 20 mph
- 10-hour Fuel Stick Moisture less than or equal to 8%

For WV/OH...
- Relative Humidity less than or equal to 25%
- Sustained Wind Speed greater than or equal to 15 mph
- 10-hour Fuel Stick Moisture less than or equal to 8%

The
appropriate district forestry office should notify the Pittsburgh WFO when the
fuel moisture of the 10 hour fuel moisture sticks have/or are expected to drop
critical values.

Fuel
values can also be obtained at the Wildland Fire
Assessment System (WFAS) web page at

http://www.wfas.net/index.php/dead-fuel-moisture-moisture--drought-38

If,
after being notified of low fuel moisture, the Pittsburgh WFO determines that
the relative humidity/wind criteria may (or will) be met, the Pittsburgh WFO
should coordinate (when possible) with the affected forestry district(s) and
decide whether a FIRE WEATHER WATCH or RED FLAG WARNING is needed. If contacts
cannot be made to coordinate, the Pittsburgh WFO may issue a FIRE WEATHER WATCH
or RED FLAG WARNING based on meteorological conditions and a reasonable
estimate of fuel conditions.

If a
Fire Weather Watch or Red Flag Warning is issued, the Pittsburgh WFO will
include a HEADLINE in the daily fire weather forecast, as well as any spot
forecasts issued during the event. In addition, if a Fire Weather Watch or Red
Flag Warning is issued after the routine Fire Weather Forecast is issued, an
updated FWF shall be issued.

For events that are
approaching, but less than Red Flag criteria, Special Weather Statements should
be issued highlighting the threat.

14.0 NOAA Weather Radio

The NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration) weather radio continually broadcasts weather and related
information over a special broadcast band. This band is available on specially
designed radios equipped to pick up the frequencies assigned to this band. Maps
of the areas covered by the PBZ CWA radios are included.

Following are the PBZ CWA NOAA weather radios and
their assigned frequencies.

LocationStationFrequency

a)
Pittsburgh,
Pa KIH-35 162.550

b) Parker, Pa WWG-53 162.425

c)
Bridgeport,
Oh WWF-35 162.525

d) High Hill, Oh WXJ-47 162.475

e)
Backbone
Mountain, WvKXI-73
162.450

f)
Morgantown, WvKWN-35
162.475

g)
Gregg
Knob,
Wv KWN-36
162.500

h)
Punxsutawney,
Pa KZZ-42 162.500

i)
New
Philadelphia, Oh WNG-735 162.425

15.0 On-Site Meteorological Support

Large wildfires may require an incident response.
If the occasion should arise in the Pittsburgh CWA, then the appropriate state
would request an Air Transportable Mobile Unit ( ATMU). This unit would be requested by the
state or federal government through the U.S. Forest Service or the National
Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in
Boise,
Idaho. The local user agency requesting the on-site forecast service has the primary
responsibility (administrative, financial, etc.) for transporting the ATMU and
Incident Meteorologist to and from the incident.

DAILY FIRE WEATHER PRODUCT (example for one county along with
outlook)

FIRE WEATHER PLANNING FORECAST

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE PITTSBURGH PA

330 AM EDT DAY MTH DT YEAR

.DISCUSSION...

A LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL CROSS TODAY BRINGING A CHANCE FOR RAIN AND SNOW SHOWERS.

WEAK HIGH PRESSURE WILL SLIDE TO THE SOUTH OF THE REGION ON TUESDAY...WITH A SERIES OF

LOWS THEN AFFECTING THE REGION THROUGH FRIDAY.

PAZ021-102130-

ALLEGHENY-

INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...PITTSBURGH METRO AREA

330 AM EDT DAY MTH DT YEAR

TODAY TONIGHT TUE

CLOUD COVER MCLDY MCLDY PCLDY

CHANCE PRECIP (%) 30 20 0

PRECIP TYPE SHOWERS SHOWERS NONE

TEMP (24H TREND) 40 (+9) 25 (+7) 41

RH % (24H TREND) 49 (+1) 79 (-14) 43

20FTWND-VAL/AM(MPH) LGT/VAR LGT/VAR

20FTWND-RDG/PM(MPH) SW 5 LGT/VAR SW 7

PRECIP AMOUNT 0.07 0.03 0.00

PRECIP DURATION 2 1

PRECIP BEGIN 6 AM CONTINUING

PRECIP END CONTINUING 12 AM

MIXING HGT(M-AGL/MSL) 1140 1170

MIXING HGT(FT-AGL/MSL)3750 3830

TRANSPORT WND (MPH) SW 10 W 15

VENT RATE (MPH-FT) 37500 57450

DISPERSION 5 5

LAL 1 1 1

HAINES INDEX 3 3 3

REMARKS...NONE.

.FORECAST FOR DAYS 3 THROUGH 7...

.WEDNESDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY. LOWS IN THE LOWER 30S. HIGHS IN THE MID 40S.

WEST WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH.

.THURSDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH CHANCE OF RAIN SHOWERS AND SNOW SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE

LOWER 30S. HIGHS IN THE MID 50S. SOUTH WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH.

.FRIDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY WITH CHANCE OF RAIN SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE UPPER 30S. HIGHS IN

THE LOWER 50S. SOUTHWEST WINDS 5 TO 10 MPH.

.SATURDAY...CLOUDY WITH CHANCE OF RAIN SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE MID 30S. HIGHS IN THE

MID 40S. NORTHWEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH.

.SUNDAY...MOSTLY CLOUDY. CHANCE OF RAIN SHOWERS. LOWS IN THE UPPER 20S. HIGHS IN THE

MID 40S. WEST WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH.

$$

.OUTLOOK 8 TO 14 DAYS...

TEMPERATURES BELOW NORMAL. PRECIPITATION ABOVE NORMAL.

$$

WIMS Fire Weather Site Forecast {PITFWMPBZ}

FNUS81 KPBZ 082100

FWMPBZ

FCST,361002,100408,13,8,60,65,1,3,S,13,,80,58,80,32,0,5,N

FCST,361291,100408,13,8,61,61,1,3,SSW,17,,79,58,77,27,0,0,N

FCST,460901,100408,13,8,62,60,1,3,SSW,16,,83,59,70,17,0,0,N

FCST,460101,100408,13,8,58,65,1,3,NW,11,,81,58,78,30,0,5,N

FCST,462601,100408,13,8,61,56,1,3,SW,13,,79,57,71,18,0,0,N

Sites for the Site Specific Forecasts:

Allegheny
National
Forest at Marienville PA ALLEGH 361002

Quarry
Trail in Westmoreland County PA QUARRY 361291

Tomlinson
Run State Park Tomlinson Run WV TOMLIN 460101

Kingwood
WV – KINGWO 460901

Monongahela
National Forest at Beard Knob DAVIS 462601

Attachment # 5

Haines IndexCategories(forpotentialfire growth)

3
or less - Very Low

4 - Low

5 - Moderate

6 - High

Attachment # 6

DISPERSIONCATEGORIES

Very Poor (1); Poor (2); Fair (3);
Good (4); Excellent (5)

Attachment # 7

LIGHTNINGACTIVITYLEVELS
(LAL)

1. - No Thunderstorms/Lightning

2. - Few Thunderstorms/Few
Lightning Strikes

3. - Widely Scattered
Thunderstorms/Scattered Lightning Strikes

4. - Scattered
Thunderstorms/Numerous Lightning Strikes

5. - Widespread
Thunderstorms/Frequent Lightning Strikes

6. - Dry Lightning {LAL level
3 or higher with no precipitation}

Attachment # 8

SPOT WEATHER FORECAST EXAMPLE

SPOT FORECAST FOR JB HOLLOW
RX BURN...USDA
FOREST SERVICE

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
PITTSBURGH PA

328 AM EDT TUE MAR 11 2008

FORECAST IS BASED ON
IGNITION TIME OF 1130 EDT ON MARCH 11.

IF CONDITIONS BECOME UNREPRESENTATIVE...CONTACT
THE NATIONAL WEATHER

SERVICE.

.DISCUSSION...

HIGH PRESSURE WILL BUILD
ACROSS THE REGION TODAY FOR DRY CONDITIONS.

A WEAK CANADIAN LOW
PRESSURE SYSTEM WILL CROSS THE
GREAT LAKES BY

WEDNESDAY...BRINGING
SCATTERED SNOW SHOWERS.

.TODAY...

SKY/WEATHER.........PARTLY
SUNNY (55-65 PERCENT).

MAX TEMPERATURE.....AROUND
41.

MIN
HUMIDITY........52 PERCENT.

WIND (20 FT)........LIGHT
WINDS BECOMING SOUTHWEST 5 TO 6 MPH IN

THE
AFTERNOON.

MIXING
HEIGHT.......2200-2800 FT AGL.

MIXING
WINDS........WEST 12 TO 15 MPH.

.TONIGHT...

SKY/WEATHER.........PARTLY
CLOUDY (35-45 PERCENT) THEN BECOMING

MOSTLY
CLOUDY (60-70 PERCENT). SLIGHT CHANCE OF

SNOW
SHOWERS EARLY IN THE MORNING.

MIN
TEMPERATURE.....AROUND 27.

MAX HUMIDITY........85
PERCENT.

WIND (20
FT)........SOUTHWEST WINDS 5 TO 6 MPH EARLY IN THE EVENING

BECOMING LIGHT...THEN
BECOMING SOUTHWEST 5 TO 6

MPH LATE
IN THE EVENING.

MIXING HEIGHT.......1800-2400
FT AGL.

MIXING WINDS........WEST 15
TO 24 MPH INCREASING TO 25 TO 26 MPH

EARLY IN
THE MORNING.

.WEDNESDAY...

SKY/WEATHER.........MOSTLY
CLOUDY (70-80 PERCENT).

MAX TEMPERATURE.....AROUND
45.

MIN
HUMIDITY........59 PERCENT.

WIND (20 FT)........WEST
WINDS 7 TO 8 MPH.

MIXING
HEIGHT.......2000-2900 FT AGL.

MIXING WINDS........WEST 23
TO 31 MPH DECREASING TO 15 TO 20 MPH

EARLY IN
THE AFTERNOON.

$$

FORECASTER...30

REQUESTED BY...CAMERON CRISP

TYPE OF
REQUEST...PRESCRIBED

.TAG 20080311.JBHOL.01/PBZ

Attachment # 9

RED FLAG WARNING AND FIRE WEATHER WATCH

WWUS81 KPBZ 120419

RFWPBZ

RED FLAG WARNING

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
PITTSBURGH PA

1219 AM EDT WED MAR 12 2008

MDZ001-PAZ030-032-WVZ022-023-041-121230-

/O.NEW.KPBZ.FW.W.0001.080312T0600Z-080313T0000Z/

GARRETT-WESTMORELAND-FAYETTE-MONONGALIA-
PRESTON-TUCKER-

1219 AM EDT WED MAR 12 2008

...RED FLAG WARNING IN
EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE IN
PITTSBURGH
HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG

WARNING...WHICH IS IN
EFFECT UNTIL 8 PM EDT THIS EVENING.

MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITIES
WILL FALL TO AROUND 25 PERCENT BY THIS

AFTERNOON...AND WINDS WILL
INCREASE TO 20 TO 30 MPH.

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS
THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE

EITHER
OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY. A
COMBINATION OF STRONG

WINDS...LOW RELATIVE
HUMIDITY...AND WARM TEMPERATURES WILL CREATE

EXPLOSIVE
FIRE GROWTH POTENTIAL.

$$

WWUS81 KPBZ 120423

RFWPBZ

FIRE WEATHER WATCH

NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE
PITTSBURGH PA

1223 AM EDT WED MAR 12 2008

MDZ001-PAZ030-032-WVZ023-041-121230-

/O.NEW.KPBZ.FW.A.0001.080313T1800Z-080315T0000Z/

GARRETT-WESTMORELAND-FAYETTE-
PRESTON-TUCKER-

1223 AM EDT WED MAR 12 2008

...FIRE WEATHER WATCH IN
EFFECT FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH

FRIDAY EVENING...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER
SERVICE IN
PITTSBURGH
HAS ISSUED A FIRE

WEATHER WATCH...WHICH IS IN
EFFECT FROM THURSDAY AFTERNOON

THROUGH
FRIDAY EVENING.

DRY HIGH PRESSURE WILL
SLOWLY MOVE EAST OF THE REGION BY LATE IN

THE WEEK. AS LOW PRESSURE APPROACHES...WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 20

TO 30 MPH
THURSDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH FRIDAY. IN ADDITION...MINIMUM

RELATIVE HUMIDITIES WILL
LOWER TO AROUND 25 PERCENT...WITH LIMITED

RECOVERY
THURSDAY NIGHT.

A FIRE WEATHER WATCH MEANS
THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS

ARE
FORECAST TO OCCUR. LISTEN FOR LATER
FORECASTS AND POSSIBLE

RED FLAG
WARNINGS.

$$

Attachment # 10

WILDFIRE DANGER STATEMENT

Here is a Wildfire Danger Statement issued by the
[State] Bureau
of Forestry in [City,State].

For [Day Month Date Year] the
wildfire danger is [High, Very High, or Extreme] for the[Geographic area of danger]
of [State].

Open burning of any type is considered extremely
dangerous at this time. Contact your local fire authorities before doing any
type of open burning. Be very careful of heat and sparks while operating any
equipment or smoking in wildland areas.

Note: Information within [BRACKETS] and in BLUE will change with each
new or updated issuance.